ALICO Building, Historic office building in downtown Waco, Texas
ALICO Building is an office tower in downtown Waco, Texas. It stands 282 feet (86 meters) tall with 22 floors clad in brick and terra cotta, while the ground floors are finished with polished granite and Bedford limestone.
Sanguinet & Staats designed the ALICO Building for the Amicable Life Insurance Company, and it was completed in 1910 at a cost of US$755,000. It stood as the tallest building west of the Mississippi River until the Adolphus Hotel was finished in 1912. The F5 tornado of 1953 made it sway several feet, yet it escaped severe damage. In 1965 the Amicable and American Life companies merged, and in 1982 the Texas Historical Commission designated it a landmark.
The name ALICO comes from the Amicable Life Insurance Company, which built the tower in 1910; the company became American-Amicable after a 1965 merger. The 15-foot red neon letters were added to the roof in 1958, with the final "O" installed on November 12.
The tower remains an active office complex with shops on the ground floor. Visitors can view the facade and public areas on the ground level without prior arrangement.
The 1953 F5 tornado passed directly over the tower, which swayed several feet but escaped severe damage or collapse while many other downtown Waco buildings were destroyed. The 15-foot red neon ALICO letters were completed on November 12, 1958, when the final "O" was installed.
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